1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to devices for preventing access to a spare tire mounted in a hoistable carrier below the rear part of a vehicle.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In many late model pick-up truck models a spare tire is stored on a hoist-equipped carrier under the rear of the truck frame. According to these designs a spare tire may be placed in a lowered carrier and then the carrier may be hoisted to a tuck position which secures the tire against removal. The hoist mechanism includes a rearwardly extending drive shaft having a female end which may be engaged in drive relationship by the male end of a portable crank that is insertible through a hole in the rear bumper to accomplish this. A major drawback of such tire carriers is insufficient security. Unfortunately, substitute handles have been frequently used for unauthorized lowering of the spare tire carrier. Various attempts have been made to combat this problem but they all have shortcomings. For example, one method of securing the spare tire is to use a chain and padlock to lock the carrier in its tuck position. Unfortunately this can be cumbersome, and requires one to crawl under the vehicle in order to properly attach the lock and chain, which items in any event are susceptible to being sheared by cutting tools, such as bolt cutters.